DECENT WORK FOR SHIPBREAKING WORKERS (A study in Alang/Sosiya and Mazgaon)

By S.M. Fahimuddin Pasha A dissertation submitted in the partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in Globalisation and Labour

Centre for Labour Studies M.A. in Globalization & Labour School of Management and Labour Studies Tata Institute of Social Sciences Mumbai 400088

MARCH 2010

DECENT WORK FOR SHIPBREAKING WORKERS (A study in Alang/Sosiya and Mazgaon)

A dissertation submitted in the partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in Globalisation and Labour

Submitted By S.M. Fahimuddin Pasha 2008GL017 M.A. in Globalization & Labour

Under the guidance of Dr. Sharit K. Bhowmik Professor and Dean School of Management and Labour Studies Tata Institute of Social Sciences Mumbai 400088 MARCH 2010

CERTIFICATE
This is to certify that the dissertation entitled DECENT WORK FOR SHIPBREAKING WORKERS (A study in Alang/Sosiya and Mazgaon) is the record of the original work done by S.M. Fahimuddin Pasha under my guidance. The results of the research presented in this dissertation have not previously formed the basis for the award of any degree, diploma or certificate of this or any other university.

(10th March, 2010)

(Dr. Sharit K. Bhowmik) Professor and Dean School of Management and Labour Studies Tata Institute of Social Sciences

DECLARATION
I, S.M. Fahimuddin Pasha, hereby declare that this dissertation entitled DECENT WORK FOR SHIPBREAKING WORKERS (A study in Alang/Sosiya and Mazgaon) is the outcome of my own study undertaken under the guidance of Dr. Sharit K. Bhowmik, Professor and Dean of School of Management and Labour Studies, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai. It has not previously formed the basis for the award of any degree, diploma or certificate of this or any other university. I have duly acknowledged all the sources used by me in the preparation of this dissertation.

10th March, 2010

(S.M. Fahimuddin Pasha)

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
It is indeed a great pleasure to attribute my thanks and regards to the people who bestowed the heartiest and kind guidance in helping me to develop this research report that would not have been possible without the valuable inputs from different people in terms of providing knowledge, information, support, help and time. At the outset, I would like to extend my sincere thanks to the faculty of Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) who helped me in understanding about conditions of the working class in the informal economy during the classroom teaching and field-based assignments. I am deeply indebted to my research supervisor Dr. Sharit K. Bhowmik, Professor and Dean, School of Management and Labour Studies, TISS, Mumbai. This study would not have turned out as it has without his able supervision. I would like to express my gratitude to Mumbai Port Trust Dock and General Employees Union (MPTDGEU) for providing all the necessary support for this research work. I am grateful to the veteran leader of Indian Trade Union Movement and president of MPTDGEU Dr. Shanti Patel and General Secretary of the Union Adv. S.K. Shetey, for their understanding and encouragement, which helped me to carry out my research work successfully. It was a great learning experience for me to work under their guidance. Also, I extend my gratitude to all the members and office bearers of MPTDGEU especially Mr. Sudhakar Apraj, Mr. Vidyadhar Rane, Mr. Maruti Vishwasrao, Adv. Jai Prakash Sawant and Mr. Vithoba Pawar, for providing me supports in the field and giving me insights about their profession which added value to this study and I sincerely express my gratitude to the General Secretary of ASSRGWA, Mr. Vidyadhar Rane, for his unconditional and timely guidance and

support. His motivation and encouraging words shall always be a spirit of motivation for me to do my best. I want to extend my sincere thanks to other office bearers of ASSRGWA especially Mr. Vikas Nalawade, Mr. Shabbir Khalani and Mr. Ram Patel for their affection and support throughout my study. I am also thankful to our senior students especially Shahina Parveen, a research scholar of TISS, whose deep understanding of the research helped me to formulate my research in a better manner. At last but not the least I cannot forget to thank the
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shipbreaking workers in Alang/Sosiya(Gujarat) and Mazgaon(Mumbai) who not only responded my questions but had to bear with my ignorance about field realities. A lot of people have helped me in this endeavor. I apologies to those whom I failed to mention.

Date: 10/03/2010

S.M.Fahimuddin Pasha

iv

ABSTRACT
The study Decent Work for the shipbreaking workers (A study in Alang/Sosiya and Mazgaon) is an attempt to assess knowledge about the areas where shipbreaking workers are not getting the remedies of Decent Work. Decent Work is a concept formulated by ILO in order to make the world of work, free from exploitation and gender biasness by promoting rights at work, employment opportunity, social dialogue and social protection. ILO is trying to cover the unorganized sector with the remedies of Decent Work, so that the bad jobs of unorganized sector will become good jobs. The shipbreaking activities in India shifted from the European countries in 1980s. The industry not only explores the employment opportunities but also gives steel to the country without causing depletion to the natural resources. Though this industry plays a vital role in strengthening the economy, it has few drawbacks also. The main concern is related with health, safety and environment. Shipbreaking activities have adverse impact on environment. The work which is offered by this industry is dangerous and peculiar in its nature. For making the industry less hazardous and environmental sound management ILO, IMO and Basel Convention have come up with their guidelines. The Supreme Court of India has also given its order in this regard. Apart from India the ship dismantling is carried out in Bangladesh, China, Pakistan, Turkey and Vietnam. The two main places in India where shipbreaking activities are undertaken are Mazgaon (Mumbai) and Alang/ Sosiya (Mumbai). This study is based on the survey of these two areas. In Alang and Mazgaon, the atmosphere of fear and intimidation ensures that workers remain submissive. From drinking water to social security measures, there are several issues which need to be addressed by suitable interventions. The study compares the shipbreaking workers conditions with the decent work indicators by examining their conditions, and comes up with some suggestions to improve the conditions of the workers.

CONTENT
Certificate..............................i Declaration...........................ii Acknowledgement.................iii Abstract.................................v List of figures and tables.......vii Appendix....viii Abbreviations .......................ix Glossary................................xi SECTION I SECTION II INTRODUCTION REVIEW OF LITERATURE II.1 Decent Work II.2 Informal Sector II.3 Guidelines for shipbreaking II.4 Case studies of different countries SECTION III OBJECTIVES AND RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 28-31 III.1 Objectives of the study III.2 Research question III.3 Research Methodology III.4 Research Design III.5 Area of the study SECTION IV SECTION V STRATIFICATION OF THE WORKERS FINDINGS V.1 Analysis and Interpretation of Data V.2 Major issues related with shipbreaking workers V.3 Role of Trade Union SECTION VI SECTION VII WORKERS AND DECENT WORK INDICATORS CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTIONS 48-53 54-56 57-59 32-33 34-47 1-3 4-27

BIBLIOGRAPHY

APPENDIX..60-78

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LIST OF FIGURES AND TABLES:

A. FIGURES Figure IV.1: Staff structure of the shipbreaking industry in India Figure V.1: Categories of workers Figure V.2: Migrant workers Figure V.3: Working conditions of workers Figure V.4: Management behavior Figure V.5: Members of the Union Figure V.6: Opinion about the existing Union Figure V.7: Awareness of safety rules Figure V.8: Availability of medical staff on work place Figure V.9: Injuries of workers while working at plot Figure V.10: Reason(s) for injury Figure V.11: Getting money during scarcity 32 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44

B. TABLES: Table II.1: Workers of organised and unorganised sector in India Table II.2: Hazards of shipbreaking industry Table II.3: Year wise fatal accidents in Alang/Sosiya 10 16 27

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APPENDIX: Appendix1: Geographical locations Appendix2: Sample of an interview schedule Appendix3: Order of the Supreme Court of India Appendix4: Materials which are obtained while breaking ships Appendix 5: Hazardous substances Appendix6: Occupational diseases and accidents Appendix7: Photographs related with the study 60 61 67 71 72 73 75

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ABBEREVIATIONS

ACM- Asbestos-Containing Materials AERB- Atomic Energy Regulatory Board ASSRGWA- Alang Sosiya Ship Recycling & General Workers Association DWT- Deadweight Tons ESM- Environmental Sound Management GMB- Gujarat Maritime Board HMS- Hind Mazdoor Sabha HSE- Health, Safety and the Environment HW- Hazardous Waste (Rule) ICLS- International Conference of Labour Statisticians IMF- International Metal Workers Federation IMO- International Maritime Organization IWPSR- Industry Working Party on Ship Recycling MEPC- Marine Environment Protection Committee MEPC- Maritime Environmental Protection Committee MPTDGEU- Mumbai Port Trust Dock and General Employees Union NCEUS- National Commission for Enterprises for the Unorganised Sector NGOs- Non-Governmental Organizations NIOH- National Institute of Occupational Health OECD- Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development OSH- Occupational Safety and Health PF- Provident Fund PPEs- Personnel Protective Equipments

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SC- Supreme Court of India SMEFI- Steel Metal and Engineering Federation of India SPCB- State Pollution Control Board SRIA- Ship Recycling Industries Association (India) UNEP- United Nations Environment Programme UNEP- United Nations Environment Programme WIEGO- Women in Informal Employment: Globalizing and Organizing

GlOSSARY
Rs. It refers to Indian rupees. The conversion of Indian rupees to US dollars is US$ 1 = Rs. 40-45. Lakh It is a unit in the Indian Numbering System. An Indian lakh is equivalent to hundred thousand. Crore It is a unit in the Indian Numbering System. An Indian crore is equivalent to ten million. Chantiwala The literal meaning of Chantiwala is a person who sorting out. The term uses for the particular category of an unskilled worker in Alang/ Sosiya and Mazgaon. They work in a group of 5-6 and collect only ferrous metal from the vessels. Begari The term uses for the particular category of unskilled workers in Alang/Sosiya and Mazgaon. They use to pick up small pieces of metal while cutting big pieces of metal into small once and also involve in cleaning job of a particular plot. Greenpeace It is an International activist group working on the issue of environment. They raise voices against the toxic wastes causes due to dismantling world including India. Jodi The literal meaning of Jodi is addition. They are manual workers who perform their job in the group of 4-5 in the plot of Alang/ Sosiya and Mazgaon. Their duty is to carry big ropes from one place to another and tight the vessels with ropes and pull it. Malpani It is a term use for the particular category of unskilled workers in Alang/ Sosiya. There duty is to collect only non-ferrous metal from the vessels. across the

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Mukadam Mukadam is a group leader in a particular plot of Alang/ Sosiya and Mazgaon. Under his guidance, other workers perform their duty.

Shipbreaker The term uses for the employer in shipbreaking industry. They get plot from GMB and MBPT on lease, where ship dismantling is carried out.

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SECTION I INTRODUCTION
Decent work1 for Shipbreaking workers title that deals with the issue of shipbreaking workers in the context of decent work components. Decent work is a concept which is formulated by ILO in order to implement it in the working society so that it could be free from the gender bias, exploitation, vulnerable and pathetic working condition. It also believes in generating employment opportunities for the workers under a safe and hazardous free environment by promoting social dialogue among the different stake holders in the world of work. According to the ILO Director General Juan Somavia, The primary goal of the ILO today is to promote

opportunities for women and men to obtain decent and productive work, in conditions of freedom, equality, security and human rights (ILO, 1999). There are four important components of decent work which are as follow Right at work Employment opportunity Social Dialogue Social Protection Apart from the above components decent work deals with other several issues such as unemployment, vulnerable working conditions, lack of voices of working class, insecurity, gender bias etc. India is a country having more than 115 crore population where almost 40 crores are working population. According to the 61st round of National Sample Report 2005, 92% of the workforce is in unorganised sector where they are not getting adequate social protection and not having collective voices too. Whereas for only 2.8 crore

The term decent work was introduced in 1999 in the report of the Director General to the International Conference meeting in its 87th Session.
1.

(NSS-2005) workers for organised sector there are more than 65000 trade unions are working. In India Trade Union movement is facing is undergoing a crisis such as The role of trade Union is mainly limited to the organised sector workers. It is one of the major challenges for the trade union to unionise the unorganised sector workers. Mushrooming of so many trade unions in India also hampers the workers agenda and causes division among them. Not having adequate representation of women and youth in trade union movement. Implementation of decent work remedies for the informal workers where the nature of work is very much peculiar and harsh. Shipbreaking industry is also not free from the characteristics of the informal economy. Shipbreaking is a recycling industry that dismantles old ships to recover steel scrap and other materials. It can be conducted at a beach, pier, dry dock or dismantling slip. Steel continues 90% in terms of value and other materials (machine, equipment, furniture and fittings, and so on) constitute the remaining 10%. Shipbreaking is a challenging process involving a complexity of issues like ecology, environment, labour, health and safety. This industry generally recognized as a hazardous industry, mainly concentrated in the developing countries of Asia. Ship breaking industry shifted from high income countries (in the 1960s) to middle income countries (in the 1980s and 1990s). This is due to the growing awareness and concern on the environment and stringent regulations followed in developed countries and the availability of the cheap labour, poverty and less stringent norms or legislation pertaining to environment in developing countries. According to the Commission of the European Communities (2005) the Countries where shipbreaking are carried out are India (42%), Bangladesh (23%), China (15%), Pakistan (8%), Turkey (1%), Vietnam (1%) and others 10(%). An average of 700 ships are taken for dismantling every year the world over and about 350 to 450 ships are scraped in India. Alang and Sosiya (Gujarat) and

Darukhana (Mumbai) are the two important places in India where shipbreaking 2

activities are carried out. A part from these places there are other places in India also where the ship dismantling are happening in a very small extent Tadri and Maipe (Karnatka), Baypore (Kerala), Vishakhapatnam (Andhra Pradesh), Valinokan and Tuticorn (Tamil Nadu). In India more than 60000 people directly and almost 100000 indirectly are getting livelihood from this particular industry. In fact Alang- Sosiya is the largest yard of the world that consists 183 shipbreaking yards. It is stretching to distance of 15 kilometers and with the capacity to break Very large Crude carrier and Ultra Large Crude Crarrier vessels, a facility unavailable elsewhere. Mazgaon consists 19 plots and comparatively smaller than Alang/Sosiya. The majority of shipbreaking workers are migrant workers and coming from different weaker states of India such as Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Orissa and Chhattisgarh. They hire either on a daily or monthly basis, or a contract basis without any written contract of employment. It shows that they do not have any job security. They are mostly uneducated, relatively young between 19 and 45, and mostly male. Women workers are only 3% and they have no particular skill. Workers categorization is based on the different stages of shipbreaking from gas cutter to unskilled workers. They use to live in small and clumsy rooms which are made up of asbestos, plywood, metal sheets in a very pathetic condition. They are subjected to various occupational diseases and other diseases because of their working condition which is very much hazardous and unsafe in nature. Medical expenses and social security are not considerd as employers responsibility and these practices are totally based on shipbreakers whim and ways. Even they are not getting the basic facilities such as drinking water and toilet. They do not come under the labour legislation and also not getting the benefit of P.F and insurance. So we can say that shipbreaking workers are leading a vulnerable life because of hazardous and peculiar nature of their job. This study will try to explore the reasons for not getting the remedies of decent work to the shipbreaking workers and also give suggestion in this regard

SECTION II REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Review of literature has been synthesized in the following four sections. In the first section decent works its components, agenda and indicators have been discussed from the different literatures. The second section has dealt with the informal economy in special reference to Indian context. Guidelines regarding safety and security for the shipbreaking workers have been reviewed in the third section which has been suggested by various renowned national and international organizations such as ILO, IMO, Basel Convention, Supreme Court of India and Gujarat Maritime Board. And In the last section case study of the various countries where the ship dismantling process is carried out including India have been reviewed. II.1 Decent work Decent work deals with several issues such as unemployment, vulnerable working conditions, lack of voices of working class, insecurity, gender bias etc. ILO is trying to promote decent work in all the countries of the world because it believes that poverty anywhere is a threat to prosperity everywhere. The primary goal of the ILO today is to promote opportunities for women and men to obtain decent and productive work, in conditions of freedom, equality, security and human rights (Somavia, 1999). This decent work agenda is or not only for formal sector worker but also for unregulated wage workers, self employed workers and home based workers those who work in the informal sector (Ghai, 2003) II.1.1 Dimension of decent work Anker et al. (2002) has given six important dimensions of decent work which he derived from the statement of Somavia. Opportunities for all to find any kind of work, including self-employment, family work, and wage employment in both the informal and formal sectors. Freedom of choice of employment, i.e. excluding forced, bonded and slave labour and unacceptable forms of child labour.

 Productive work, providing adequate incomes and ensuring competitiveness. Equity in work, including absence of discrimination in access to and at work. Security at work, as far as health, pensions and livelihoods are concerned. Dignity at work, not only in the respect that is extended to workers, but also in their freedom to join organizations which represent their interests and to voice concerns and participate in decision making about working conditions. II.1.2 Decent work Agenda Dharam Ghai (2003) has asserted about the four main strategic objectives of decent work which is obtain by ILO. Fundamental principles and rights at work and international labour standards The ethical and legal framework for all elements of decent work is carried out by fundamental principles and rights at work and international labour standard. Their objective is to ensure that work is associated with dignity, equality, freedom, adequate remuneration, social security, voice, representation and participation for all categories of workers. ILO declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work in 1998, insisted on four major areas which are freedom of Association (collective bargaining), forced labour, discrimination (at work) and child labour. These rights are considered so basic that their acceptance is regarded as a prerequisite of ILO membership. Certainly, they form the core of the rights component of decent work. Employment and work Employment is a vital component of decent work. It refers not just to wage jobs but to work of all kinds self-employment, wage employment, work from home, fulltime, part-time, casual work and to work done by women, men and children. For decent work to obtain, certain conditions must be satisfied such as adequate employment opportunities, adequate remuneration, no discrimination on the basis of sex, gender, region and minorities, protection against accidents, unhealthy and dangerous working conditions, and excessively long hours of work, right of collective bargaining with intervention of state and an essential minimum of social security. 5

Work that meets these conditions is a source of dignity, satisfaction and fulfillment to workers. It motivates them to give their best efforts and contributes to harmonious working relations, political stability, economical growth and strengthening the democracy. Social protection It is said that there are six major contingencies in the life of a person which may affect the persons earning capacity. They are sickness, accident, maternity, unemployment, old age and death. Apart from these contingencies there are other situations also like destitution, extreme economic fluctuations, natural disasters and civil conflicts that cause vulnerabilities for the bread winners and their dependents. So, it is very clear that a person who is the breadwinner of the family requires social security against a variety of contingencies and vulnerabilities. A sound social protection strategy should also address the needs of vulnerable groups such as

orphaned or abandoned children, single mothers, female-headed households, widows, old persons in need and the disabled. They should promote health, confidence and a willingness to accept technical and institutional innovations for higher productivity and growth. Social dialogue It is defined by the ILO to include all types of negotiation, consultation or simply exchange of information between, or among, representatives of governments, employers and workers, on issues of common interest relating to economic and social policy. It can exist as a tripartite process, with the government as an official party to the dialogue or it may consist of bipartite relations only between labour and management (or trade unions and employers' organisations), with or without indirect government involvement. ILO conventions freedom of association is related with the social dialogue. It provides voice and representation to participants in the production process. In this way it is a vital element in a representative and participatory democracy. The main goal of social dialogue itself is to promote consensus building and democratic involvement among the main stakeholders in the world of work. Apart from the four above strategies Ghai (2003) also explored the indicators of the decent work. He asserted that, A different approach used by some analysts is to 6

classify decent work into eleven measurement categories: employment opportunities, acceptable work, adequate earnings and productive work, decent hours, stability and security of work, balancing work and family life, fair treatment in employment, safe work environment, social protection, social dialogue and workplace relations, and the economic and social context of decent work. He also said that decent work can measured at three different levels- the macro (national), meso (enterprise) and micro (individual) level which is very much related with the four strategies of decent work. Karuvilla (1996) categorized the countries on basis of the freedom of association category A (Independent, Trade union is free from the government control), category B (Unclear, some degree of government control on trade union) and Category C (Not Independent, not free from the government control or there is only one Government friendly federation). Authors (Sen 2000; Saget 2001; Ghai 2003;) agreed that there is lack of income and employment opportunities, insufficient social protection, lack of safety at work place and unhealthy working conditions for informal sector workers. II.2 Informal sector The most visible occupational group that work on the streets or in the open air belong to Informal economy. In developing countries city streets and village lanes and in many developed countries are lined with barbers, cobblers, rag pickers, vendors, hawkers and many others are part of the informal economy. Even in rural area a large section of workforce earn their livelihoods working on farm, making handicraft, cattle farming, collecting and processing minor forest farms. They all consider in informal sector. The term Informal sector had been coined by a British economist, Keith Hart in 1971. He used this term while doing his study of Economic activities in Urban Ghana (Keith Hart 1973). Officially the concept of informal sector was used in the Kenya Employment Mission in 1972. It had been recognised that the traditional sector should not be persisted but had expanded to include profitable and efficient enterprises along with marginal activities. So instead of using traditional sector it was decided to use the term informal sector. II.2.1 Features of Informal economy

ILO and WIEGO (2003)2 explored the new definition of Informal economy that it comprised all forms of informal employment- that is informal without contracts, workers benefits or social protection- both inside and outside informal enterprises, including self employment in informal enterprises, wage employment in informal firms and industrial outworkers. The above definition comprises the features of informal economy which are as followSelf-employment in informal enterprises: workers self employee in unregistered enterprises, engage in own small trade, operate farm, either own account operators including unpaid family workers. Wage employment in informal jobs: workers employing for remuneration through direct employer or contractor or agencies without having social protection, formal contracts and worker benefits. Domestic workers, unregistered or undeclared workers and temporary or part-time workers comprises in this category of Informal economy. Industrial outworkers: They are mainly unprotected wage workers in the formal sector. Though they work in formal sector but come under informal sector because they do not get any legal remedies like formal sectors workers. Over the years, there are the crystallized debates on informal sector regarding its existence and relation with formal sector. It has been said that there are three importantschools of thoughts on this particular sector (Martha Alter Chein, 2004). They are as followsThe dualist school - This school was popularised by the ILO in the 1970s, with the notion that the informal sector is comprised of marginal activities. It provides income for the poor and a safety net in times of crisis. According to the thinkers of this school (Hart 1973; ILO 1972; Sethuraman 1976; Tokman 1978), due to high growth of population (surplus labour) or slow rate of economic growth persist the informal activities. The structuralist school- This school of thought is subscribed to the notion that the

2.

In 2003, the ICLS expanded the definition to include informal employment outside of informal enterprises.

informal sector should be seen as subordinated economic units of formal sector. The proponents of this school (Caroline Moser; Alejandro Portes and others) said that it help large capitalist firm in order to reduce input and labour cost. In the structuralist model various modes of production are seen not only to co-exist but also to be inextricably connected and interdependent (Moser 1978; Castells and Portes 1989). The legalist school- This school is popularised by Hernando de Soto in the 1980s and 1990s, with the notion that the informal sector is comprised of micro-entrepreneurs. So, that costs, time and effort of formal registration can be avoid (de Soto 1989). de Soto et al, insisted that unreasonable government rule and regulation stifle private enterprise. He also stated that micro-entrepreneurs will continue to produce informally so long as government procedures are cumbersome and costly. Structural adjustment during the economic crisis is also responsible for the expansion of informal economy. This feature has been highlighted in the Latin American economic crisis (Tokman; 1992) and Asian crisis (Lee; 1998). When private firms or public enterprises are downsized or closed, the workers who retrenched do not able to find new formal jobs. So they have to turn to the informal economy for their livelihood (Martha Chein; 2006). Informal economy is one of the important features of the developing countries. Informal employment is comprises 48 percent in North Africa, 51 percent in Latin America, 65 percent in Asia and 72 percent in sub- Saharan countries. And they mainly comprises in agriculture sector. II.2.2 Informal Sector in India: In the Indian context the informal employment and informal economy are lacking in the conceptual clarity. According to the Central Statistical Organizations the term Organised enterprise is used for the small unit of manufacturing sector with ten or more workers with powers or 20 workers without power. However this definition doesnt cover the various aspect of unorganised sector. A new definition was propounded by NSSO, "The unorganised sector consists of all unincorporated private enterprises owned by individuals or households engaged in the sale and production of 9

goods and services operated on a proprietary or partnership basis and with less than ten total workers". Unorganised or informal employment can also defined as "Unorganised workers consist of those working in the unorganised enterprises or households, excluding regular workers with social security benefits, and the workers in the formal sector without any employment/ social security benefits provided by the employers". The above two definitions give the contrast between the informal sector and informal work. The data related with the labour force in India which comprises informal and formal sector are as given in table Table II.1: Workers of organised and unorganised sector in India Agriculture
Organised Unorganised Total

Non Agriculture
Organised Unorganised Total Organised

All
Unorganised Total

SE

2.3 1.2 2.5 6.1

163.9 1.6 87.4 252.8

166.2 2.9 2.8 89.9 41.9 11.7

89.2 24.8 28.1 142.1

92.1 66.7 39.8

5.2 43.2 14.2

253.1 26.4 115.5 394.9

258.2 69.5 129.7 457.5

RW

CW

Total

258.9 56.5

198.5 62.6

Note: Number of workers in (Million) SE = Self employed, RW= Regular Worker, CW=Casual Worker.

Source: National Sample Survey 61st Round 2004 2005 The above data shows that the total workforce in India is 457.5 million where 394.9 million are from unorganised sector that comprises 92% of the total workforce. And day by day this unorganised sector is expanding. The Informal economy in India is playing a vital role in order to provide livelihood to a large section of the working class as well as contributing in National Domestic Product that comprises almost 60% share in it (NCEUS 2007). In Indian Constitution there is overreaching framework to secure the rights of workers and give them security against the exploitation. Apart from Fundamental rights and Directive Principles there are few Central laws also that regulate the 10

working conditions of workers in the unorganised sector which comprises in three set of group as follow (NCEUS 2007)a) Laws which apply to all sections of the unorganised sector labour The Equal Remuneration Act, 1976 The Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, 1976 b) Laws which apply to some sections of the unorganised sector labour Minimum Wages Act, 1948 Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986 Dangerous Machines (Regulation) Act, 1983 The Employment of Manual Scavengers and Construction of Dry Latrines (Prohibition) Act, 1993 Inter-State Migrant Workmen (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1979 Motor Transport Workers Act, 1961 Sales Promotion Employees (Conditions of Services) Act, 1976 Trade Unions Act, 1926 c) Laws which can be extended to the Unorganised Sector Labour The Beedi and Cigar Workers (Conditions of Employment) Act, 1966. Payment of Wages Act, 1936 The Building and Other Construction Workers (Regulations of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1996. The Contract Labour (Regulation & Abolition) Act,1970 The Maternity Benefit Act, 1961 11

 Workmen's Compensation Act, 1923 Weekly Holidays Act, 1942 National Commission on Labour has described 106 categories of workers including agricultural workers, agarbatti makers, beedi rollers, construction workers, home-based workers, rickshaw pullers, street vendors, shipbreaking workers and so on in the informal sector in India. Shipbreaking Industry comprises in informal sector, so the workers belong to shipbreaking industry automatically come under the Informal economy. II.3 Guidelines This section of the dissertation has been dealt with the guidelines given by the various national and international renowned organizations- ILO, IMO, Basel Convention and Honorable Supreme Court of India. These guidelines mainly concerned with the issue of health and safety of shipbreaking workers as well as define the shipbreaking industry and responsibilities of various stakeholders of the industry. The guidelines of the above renowned organization are as followII.3.1 ILO guidelines ILO guidelines namely Safety and health in shipbreaking Guidelines for Asian countries and Turkey came with the notion for making a framework that can prevent the shipbreaking workers from the health hazard and accident, so the concept of safe work place can be achieved. In November 2002, when the 285th session of the Governing body of ILO was held during that time it was decided to organize a meeting of Experts on Safety and Health in Shipbreaking for Selected Asian

Countries and Turkey. And that meeting was held during 7 to 14 October 2003 in Bangkok, Thailand, where the above guidelines were adopted by the Interregional Tripartite body comprises representatives of government, employer and employee of five different countries: Bangladesh, China, India, Pakistan and Turkey. Apart from the above representatives technical specialists from major ship-owning countries and observers were also presented.

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These guidelines are applicable to all those government authorities, workers and employers organizations and industry associations, whose activities influence the safety, health and welfare of persons engaged in ship-breaking. (ILO- guidelines, page 2). The main objectives of these guidelines are to provide protection to shipbreaking workers from workplace hazards and to facilitate the improved management of occupational safety and health by establishing a coherent national policy and principles in this regard. It has been also suggested to improve knowledge and competence for Occupational Safety and Health (OSH). There are lots of concerns regarding this industry; in general these concerns are focus on two main areas- health and safety of workers and environmental issues. It is said by ILO that, These International Labour Organization (ILO) guidelines are the first of their kind to provide assistance to ensure safe work in shipbreaking within the framework of the ILOs decent work agenda. In so doing they provide advice on the transformation of a mainly informal economy activity into a more formal organised one. The above statement shows that ILO is very much committed for providing the decent work remedies to the shipbreaking workers. Along with decent work there are other foremost areas also which are covered by ILO guidelines; responsibilities of concerned authorities, legal framework, responsibilities of various stake holders (such as employers, suppliers, manufacturers and designers) of the Industry and rights of workers. These guidelines also suggested the definition of shipbreaking industry and concerned with the issues of occupational safety and health management. ILO in its guidelines has explored the few major challenges for the shipbreaking activities (ILO guidelines, page 4) that these activities is one of the most hazardous occupations in the world and mainly it is not covered by labour laws because generally the locations where ship dismantling has been carried out make the

enforcement of laws and regulations difficult. Even the temporary establishment of the shipbreaking site also make difficult to enforce the International Labour Standard of the ILO. Regarding safety and health in shipbreaking ILO guidelines has been suggested that in the future, all ships should carry a green passport which would follow a ship 13

from the day it was built. And authorization certificate for dismantling the ship will be given to which are safe for breaking (ILO guidelines, page 51). Certificate for Dismantling comprises the following information An updated list of hazardous substances and wastes on the ship to be dismantled provided by the ship owner in accordance with the Basel Convention and the ICS Industry. Ensuring on the part of owners, brokers and breakers that a ship to be dismantled is decontaminated and gas free for hot work. The relevant information (drawings, etc.) which is necessary for the development of a safe shipbreaking plan. OSH management systems that cover safe operations in the ship, the breaking facility and the surrounding area. Implementation of relevant conventions and documents on OSH, working and living conditions and the environment in the shipbreaking industry. Provision of appropriate housing, welfare and sanitary facilities for all workers. ILO guidelines (Ibid, page-7) have thrown light on Occupational hazards in Shipbreaking operations that cause injuries, ill health and death of workers. These include hazardous exposures generated by asbestos, PCBs, heavy metals, chemicals, excess noise and fire. The main reasons behind the occupational hazards are inadequate workers training program and lack of PPEs.

14

ILO guideline has given a list of various hazards related to the shipbreaking Industry. We can understand that hazards by the following given chartTable II.2: Hazards of shipbreaking industry Hazards with the potential of causing accidents
Fire and explosion: explosives, flammable materials Falling objects Trapping or compression Snapping of cables, ropes, chains, slings Heavy objects Access in progressively dismantled Falls from height inside ship structures or on the ground Moving objects Wet surfaces Sharp objects Oxygen deficiency in confined spaces Lack of PPE, housekeeping practices, safety signs Shackles, hooks, chains Cranes, winches, hoisting and hauling equipment

vessels (floors, stairs, passageways) Electricity (electrocution) Poor illumination

Hazardous substances and wastes

Asbestos fibres, dusts Heavy and toxic metals (lead, mercury, cadmium, copper, zinc, etc.) Organometallic etc.) Lack of hazard communication (storage, labelling, material safety data sheets) Batteries, fire-fighting liquids substances (tributyltin, PCBs and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) (combustion products) Welding fumes Volatile organic compounds (solvents) Inhalation in confined and enclosed spaces Compressed gas

Physical hazards
Noise Extreme temperatures Vibration Radiation materials) (ultraviolet, radioactive

Mechanical Hazards
Trucks and transport vehicles Scaffolding, fixed and portable ladders Power-driven hand tools, saws, grinders and abrasive cutting wheels Failure of machinery and equipment Poor maintenance of machine and equipment Lack of safety guards in machines Sharp-edged and other tools Structural failure in the ship

15

Biological hazards
Toxic marine organisms Risk of communicable diseases Animal bites Vectors of infectious diseases (TB, malaria, dengue fever, hepatitis, respiratory infections and others)

transmitted by pests, vermin, rodents, insects and other animals that may infest the ship

Ergonomic and psychosocial hazards

Repetitive strain, awkward postures, repetitive and monotonous work, excessive Mental stress, anti-social behavior (aggressive behavior, alcohol and drug abuse, violence) Poverty, low wages, under-age workers, lack of education and social environment

workload Long working hours, shift work, night work, temporary employment

General concerns
Lack of safety and health training Inadequate housing and sanitation Inadequate inspection accident prevention and Poor work organization Inadequate emergency, first-aid and

rescue facilities Lack of medical facilities and social protection

Sources: ILO guidelines

ILO has also suggested various measures against the above hazards for achieving the target of safe work place for shipbreaking workers and it can be possible if the stakeholders of the industry will show their interest and effort to implement these guidelines. II.3.2 IMO guidelines International Maritime Organization is the specialized agency of United Nation which is responsible for improving maritime safety and preventing pollutions from ships. IMO came with the guidelines namely IMO guidelines on ship recycling which was adopted on 5th December 2003. The main objectives of these guidelines to give guidance to all the stakeholders in the ship recycling process comprises flag, port, recycling states, supplying countries, relevant intergovernmental organizations and commercial bodies also (IMO guidelines, page- 5).

16

These guidelines encourage ship recycling because it is the best means for the disposal of old ships. It provides guidance for recycling the ship and encourages the stakeholders of the industry to address the issue of ship dismantling by fostering the co operation among them. These guidelines also given the definition of various term related to the shipbreaking industry such as- (IMO guidelines, page- 7) Administration The Government of the state under whose authority the ship is operating. Hazardous material- Those materials possessing harm to human health or the environment identified in the IMDG code, the Basel Convention, or other international authorities or instruments. New ships- Those ships for which the building contract is placed on or after 31 December 2003. If the building contract is not available then the keel of which is laid or which is at a similar stage of construction on or after 30 June 2004. And also the delivery of which is on or after 31 December 2006. Organization- International Maritime Organization Recycling facility- It means a site, yard or facility used for the recycling of ships which is authorized or permitted for this purpose by the competent authority of the State where the site, yard or facility is located (Recycling State). Ship- It means a vessel of any type whatsoever operating in the marine environment and includes hydrofoil boats, air-cushion vehicles, submersibles, floating craft and fixed or floating platforms and a vessel that has been stripped of equipment or is towed. Shipowner- It means the person or persons or company registered as the owner of the ship or, in the absence of registration, the person or persons or company owning the ship3.

3.

See detailed definition in the IMO guidelines in ship recycling, page-7.

17

 Ship Recycling- It is related with all associated operations including, mooring or beaching, dismantling, recovery of materials and reprocessing. Apart from the definition of above terms, these guidelines focused on various important issues such as identification of hazardous materials, green passport4, procedures for existing ship related to ship recycling, role of the stake holders and other bodies, technical cooperation and many more. So, we can say that these guidelines is related with the life cycle of ships from makers to breakers and give suggestion to ensure that full account is taken of all relevant environmental, health and safety issues by fostering the spirit of cooperation among the recycling state. Recently an IMO convention was held for the safety and environmental issues related with ship dismantling in the Hong Kong namely The Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships, 2009. During the convention a series of guidelines have developed and six resolutions have also passed which are related with technical support, monitoring, ESM, future work and others. I.3.3 Basel Convention The Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal, a technical guidelines for the environmentally sound management of the full and partial dismantling of ships was adopted in December, 2002. The convention was held in Geneva, Switzerland. The main goal of this Convention is to protect human health and the environment against adverse effects caused by the handling, transboundary movements and disposal of hazardous and other wastes. The Guidelines of the convention provide information and recommendations on procedures, processes and practices that must be implemented to attain Environmental Sound Management (ESM) at facilities for ship dismantling. According to the guidelines the ESM define as, "Environmentally sound management of hazardous wastes and other wastes" means taking all practicable steps to ensure that hazardous wastes or other wastes are managed in a manner which will

4.

Green Passport is a document providing information with regard to materials known to be potentially hazardous utilized in the

construction of the ship, its equipment and systems and always accompanied the ship throughout its operating life, ibid, page-8.

18

protect human health and the environment against the adverse effects which may result from such wastes.5 The main concerns related to these guidelines are to find out the specific challenges for ship breaking activities, identifying the potential contaminants of releases, to set the standard or limit for reducing the accident and preparedness of contingencies. In addition concern including environmental impacts, occupational safety and health. In terms of environmental impacts the shipbreaking industry affects the local surrounding and society. The various activities such as discharge and emissions to sea, sediments, ground and air creates a threat to all leaving creatures. Occupational safety is also one the major challenges, threatened by the lack of basic precautions and not having proper guidelines in this regard. It represent element of risk which cause accident in work place and also have adverse impact on the health of workers as well as local community. The harmful substance such as PCB, PAH, heavy metals and asbestos present in the most of the vessels and causes severe health problems and can be passed on to following generation. So, the intention of these Technical Guidelines is to provide guidance to shipbreaking countries for the safety, health and Environmentally Sound Management (Basel convention guidelines, page 11). These guidelines also give brief information regarding the perceived roles of the involved agencies and bodies which are as follow (Ibid, 15)IMO- This body is overall responsible for coordinating issues related with shiprecycling and monitoring issues arising during ship design, building and operation which may have an impact on recycling. ILO- The body is responsible for establishing its already existing standards and recommendations to take the lead on working conditions and operation in shore-based industries involved in ship-recycling.

5.

Environmental sound Management has defined in the Article 2.8 of the Basel Convention.

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UNEP- The Basel Convention is recognizing the limited application of the convention to the vast majority of ships which are recycled. They have to concentrate on the identification and safe handling or disposal of hazardous wastes. The 1972 London Convention- Its monitoring the disposal of ships at sea and encouraging recycling as the preferable option. Scientific Group of the convention has developed the criteria to assess ships for disposal at sea. The Shipping Industry- It has prepared an Industry Code of Practice on Ship Recycling and works with Classification Societies in improving plans to decommission ships in a safe and environmentally sound manner. Environmental groups- These agencies are continuing to monitor and report on shiprecycling issues in a responsible manner. States- The state is responsible to develop or adopt or enforce the international standard within the appropriate International organization related to ship recycling. It can be said that guidelines which came in Basel Convention are landmark for stakeholders of the ship recycling industry. It raises the concern related with transboundary movements of hazardous waste and also deals with the Environmental Sound Management within the international standard in shipbreaking. II.3.4 JOINT ILO/IMO/BC WORKING GROUP ON SHIP SCRAPPING Joint ILO/IMO/BC group on ship scrapping convention was held during 15 to 17 February 2005 at the headquarters of the International Maritime Organization. The main area of the concern of Joint ILO/IMO/BC convention working group is to examine the three existing guidelines with a view to identify any possible gaps, overlap or ambiguities and to develop joint understanding to promote the implementation of the relevant guidelines on the ship dismantling (Joint ILO/IMO/BC guidelines, page 18). In addition concern including to propose guidelines for promoting

environmentally sound management (ESM) with the consideration of three agencies. It has been also discussed the responsibility of the flag states for assuring the ESM and to develop the reporting system for ships destined for dismantling. 20

As earlier mentioned that joint ILO/IMO/BC group on ship scraping also pointed out the gaps, overlaps and ambiguities of the guidelines which are given by the three above apex body separately are as follow (Joint ILO/IMO/BC guidelines, page 3) IMO IMO guidelines are not able to give suggestion for ensuring the ESM in ship recycling and primarily based on the selection of the recycling facility only. Here most responsibility is placed on the shipbreaking state. It is also not able to incorporate the guidelines related to prior written and notification consent into the ship recycling. Basel Convention The guidelines which came in Basel Convention dont give any suggestion that how to reduce hazardous materials onboard a ship and it mainly focused on environmental issues only. The concept of model facility in these guidelines is also one of the major drawbacks of the Basel Convention guidelines because its implementation is very difficult. ILO ILO guidelines omit to mention the responsibilities of the ship owner and do not address the interaction between a shipowner and recycling facility in ensuring the Certificate of dismantling and green passport. The suggested model for shipbreaking and zoning of ship dismantling areas only refers to beach facilities. Because of having few loop holes in the above guidelines the joint IMO/ILO/BC convention suggested few practical measures for all stages of the ship recycling process such as new ship and equipment should design to minimize the use of hazardous materials and waste generation. Green passport should be prepared for new and existing ships and assured the role of the stakeholders including flag, port and recycling states, the Basel Convention, the ILO and the shipping industry. II.3.5 Supreme Court order

21

Supreme

Court

is

the

apex

judicial

body

of

India.

The

Honble

Supreme Court came up with an order on 14th October 2003 for the ship breaking industry. The background of this order was that an NGO namely Research Foundation for Science, Technology, and National Resources Policy filed a case against Common Hazardous Industries for management of hazardous waste management and import of hazardous materials in 1995. To examine the matter Supreme Court had appointed High Power Committee (HPC) and in that way Ship Recycling Industry was also included in 2000 for the examination. After the examination, HPC submitted their report to Supreme Court in 2001 and on that basis Supreme Court issued an order directing various stakeholders to play their role for the sustainable growth of the Shipbreaking Industry. The gist of Supreme Court order is as follow Requisite authorities should state that the ship that arrives at port it does not contain hazardous waste or radioactive substance. Ship should be properly decontaminated by ship owner and get ensured by State Pollution Control Board (SPCB). Hazardous and Non Hazardous wastes should be classified. Disposal of wastes as per their properties and Issuance of Authorization under Hazrdous Waste Rules to the ship Recycler. Safely disposal of waste oil, sludges and paints chips. Immediate ban on open burning of waste on the coast. The units which are running without the authorization of HW Rules should be closed. Pollution Control Board monitors marine and costal environmental parameters. Ship Recycling Regulations- 2003 on Safety and Environmental Guidelines should be applicable.

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 Concern Authority has to submit the list of Hazardous Material. The GMB and Gujarat SPCB officers should visit sites at regular. Its GMB responsibility to construct landfill site and incinerator. The Collector of the district shall be associated when the actual dismantling takes place. For monitoring the Supreme Court directions, it is needed to set up an Inter Ministerial Committee (comprising Ministry of Surface Transport, Ministry of Steel, Ministry of Labour and Ministry of Environment) under the Government of India. The Government of India has to formulate a comprehensive Code incorporating the recommendations. Until the Code comes into play, the officials of GMB, the concerned SPCB, officials of the Customs Department, NIOH and AERB shall oversee the arrangement. India should participate in international meetings on ship-breaking at the level of the International Maritime Organisation and the Basel Convention's Technical Working Group and participation should include from Central and State level. From the above discussion we can say that these guidelines which are given by various national and international organizations are primarily related with the issues of health, occupational safety, environmental sound management role and responsibilities of various stakeholders of the industry. IMO guidelines on ship recycling (December-2003) was an important step to assure the role of various agencies by fostering the cooperation among them whereas the Basel convention (December, 2002) Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal, a technical guidelines for the environmentally sound management of the full and partial dismantling of ships is mainly related with the protection of human health and the environment against adverse effects caused by the handling, transboundary movements, and disposal of hazardous and other wastes.

23

The ILO guidelines Safety and health in shipbreaking Guidelines for Asian countries and Turkey (October 2003) has concerned with the issue of ensuring the safe work in shipbreaking within the framework of the ILOs decent work Agenda. Because of having possible overlaps within the three above guidelines it was decided to develop the joint guidelines that will reduce the ambiguities, so the guidelines of Joint ILO/IMO/BC group on ship scrapping (February 2005) was developed in order to identify the possible gaps, overlap or ambiguities and to promote the implementation of the relevant guidelines on the ship breaking. Apart from these international agencies guidelines, Supreme Court of India has also issued an order directing various stakeholders to play their role for the sustainable growth of the Shipbreaking Industry. The ultimate aim of all these guidelines are to make ship breaking activities less hazardous and to develop the Environmental Sound Management for the holistic development of the Ship dismantling Industry. II.4 Case Studies of different countries on shipbreaking industry Shipbreaking activities are carried out in mainly developing countries of the world such as Pakistan, China, Bangladesh, India and other underdeveloped countries. As it earlier mentioned that shipbreaking industry is full of hazardous that causes injuries and occupational diseases to workers and also has adverse impact on environment. There are several studies made on these issues. Few of these case studies of different countries on shipbreaking industry is given below II.4.1 Pakistan Pakistan is the third largest ship-breaking country of the world (1999). Its scrapping activity is similar to that of Bangladesh. Mainly the vessels scrapped in Pakistan are oil tankers and generally vessels are scrapped by beaching. The main beach where the shipbreaking activities are undertaken is Gadani which is 50 km far from Karachi. And almost 6000 workers are earning their livelihood through shipbreaking industry (2001). It is difficult to get details information about the administration and organization of scrapping in Pakistan. There are no or few restrictions implemented relating to precautions such as safe for hot work requirements. (Anderson, 2002).

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II.4.2 China High demand for construction steel, availability of cheap labour and a welldeveloped infrastructure are important factors that create a fertile ground for ship dismantling in China. Greenpeace (2000) in his report stated that China shipbreaking looks less dramatic compare to India and Bangladesh. Breaking operation in China is different from other countries in term of dock like facility and more use of cranes and other machineries for dismantling the Vessels. These facilities have attracted ship owners for scrapping the ships in China. (Anderson, 2002). Presently, China National Ship Scrapping Association is representing approximately 15 large breaking yards. But in fact the conditions of workers remain same in China like other Asian countries. It has been noted that workers are not safe against hazardous substances including asbestos. Toxic wastes are burnt in open fires and yards are heavily polluted by oil, heavy metals and other toxic substances (Greenpeace, 2000). So it can be found that the shipbreaking industries are becoming more and more technically advanced whereas the exploitation of workers and environment remains the same in Chinese shipbreaking industry. II.4.3 Bangladesh Bangladesh ship breaking yard is the second largest yard in the world, situated at Fauzdarahat beach in Chittagong. This area is stretched about 16-km in south-west of Chittagong. Chittagong is the largest facility for large vessels, scrapping some 52 per cent of all vessels above 200,000 dwt. For domestic steel requirements Bangladesh depends on shipbreaking industry. Ship-breaking was initiated in this area in 1969 and has now grown into a considerable industry employing a large number of people. It is estimated that more than 100,000 individuals are earning livelihood from the shipbreaking activities of Chittagong (Anderson, 2002). Though shipbreaking activities provide employment opportunities and steel to domestic requirements in Bangladesh, it is not safe and protective for workers as well as environment. Various studies proved that Chittagong shipbreaking yard is a highly polluted coastal belt. Workers do not cover under labour legislation and also not having right to make their union. The number of the accident and causalities at the yard is very much high because of not having Personnel Protective Equipments (PPEs) to the workers. They dont get uniforms, protective gloves or boots (Greenpeace, 2000). 25

II.4.4 India Ship Recycling is not new to India. This activity has been carried out ever since 1913 in Kolkata and Mumbai. But mainly it was started around the middle of the 1980s6 when the low- skilled and low wages jobs shifted to the third world countries. In fact the coming of the ship recycling was a part of globalization. India at present has a large share in the ship breaking industry. An average of 700 ships are taken for dismantling every year the world over and about 350 to 450 ships are scraped in India. Alang and Sosiya (Gujarat) and Darukhana (Mumbai) are the two important places in India where shipbreaking activities are carried out. A part from these places there are other places in India also where the ship dismantling are happening in a very small extent Tadri and Maipe (Karnatka), Baypore (Kerala), Vishakhapatnam (Andhra Pradesh), Valinokan and Tuticorn (Tamil Nadu) . In India more than 60000 people directly and almost 100000 to 150000 indirectly are getting livelihood from this particular industry. In fact Alang- Sosiya is the largest yard of the world that consists 183 shipbreaking yards. It is stretching to distance of 15 kilometers and with the capacity to break Very large Crude carrier and Ultra Large Crude Crarrier vessels, a facility unavailable elsewhere. In term of economic importance of Alang, it can be said that it is a milch cattle for the state. During 1994 to 2004 it was estimated that Gujarat Maritime Board (GMB) earned Rs. 468 crore by renting out ship-breaking plots, the State Government over Rs. 1,000 crore through sales tax and the Centre about Rs. 8,000 crore in customs duty and excise. Individual owners of the plots also made good profit (The Hindu: March 2006). comparatively smaller than Alang/Sosiya. The majority of shipbreaking workers are migrant workers and coming from different weaker states of India such as Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Orissa and Chhattisgarh. They hire either on a daily or monthly basis, or a contract basis without any written contract of employment. It shows that they do not have any job security. They are mostly uneducated, relatively young between 19 and 45, and mostly male. Women workers are only 3% and they have no particular skill. Workers categorization is based on the different stages of shipbreaking Mazgaon consists 19 plots and

6.

The first vessel MV KOTA TENJONG was beached at Alang on 13th Feb, 1983.

26

from gas cutter to unskilled workers. They use to live in small and clumsy rooms which are made up of asbestos, plywood and metal sheets. They are subjected to various occupational diseases and other diseases because of their working condition which is very much hazardous and unsafe in its nature. The shipbreaking industry also presents a dangerous work environment with high risk of injury and accidents with poor equipments and machinery and with inadequate safety devices (IMF- survey, 2007). The rate of fatal accident is also very high in shipbreaking industry. It can be showed through the below table. Table II.3: Year wise fatal accidents in Alang/Sosiya.
Year Fatal Accident No. Ships of

1998 28

1999 30

2000 29

2001 08

2002 19

2003 25

2004 06

2005 04

2006 06

2007 06

2008 0

361

296

295

333

300

294

196

101

136

136

197(upto June)

Sources: Gujarat Maritime Board (GMB) From the above table we can say that the rate of the accidents declined year after year. And there is little correlation between fatal accidents and number of ships. There has been an increase in number of ships coming for dismantling, corresponding the number of accidents has also gone up. Medical expenses and social security are not considered as employers responsibility and these practices are totally based on shipbreakers whim and ways. The National Commision Report on Labour (2002) recognized the ship breaking industry as an organised industry and has stressed on the applicability of concerned industrial and labour laws related to it. Here all workers are non- permanent workers and due to the chain of contractors they are even not aware about their principle employer. Despite of having the status of industry workers are still informal and they are not getting their labour rights which clearly violate various international and national laws (Misra, 2009). So we can say that shipbreaking workers are leading a vulnerable life because of hazardous and peculiar nature of their job. 27

SECTION III OBJECTIVES AND RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

III.1 Objectives of the study Based on the above discussion the main objective of the study is to understand how the components of the decent work, which is suggested by ILO, can be implemented among the shipbreaking workers. The main objectives of the study are, To understand the socio economic condition of shipbreaking workers including migration, hazardous work, health, safety at workplace, housing, level of income, employer- employee relationship and working condition of the workers. To examine the various initiatives which are taken by Gujarat Maritime Board, International Metal Workers Federation and Mumbai Port Trust for the welfare of shipbreaking workers and Sound environmental sound

management. To find out at what extent the shipbreaking workers are related with the indicators of decent work that comprises right at work, International Labour Standard, social protection and social dialogues. III.2 Research Questions How Shipbreaking workers can be incorporated with the elements of decent work? How the Union can work more effectively in order to secure the rights of the shipbreaking workers? What measures should be taken to make their job less hazardous? III.3 Research Methodology Social Research is a systematic and scientific way to get the reality. It is related with reliable evidence and for getting reliable evidence it is necessary to use a 28

research methodology. According to Ian Robertson, A methodology is system of rules, principles and procedures, that guides scientific investigation. Research Methodology provides guidelines for collecting evidence about what takes place and why it takes place.

Sampling: Sampling is an important aspect of social survey. It should precisely represent or reflect its elements. Sample is portion of people drown from a larger population. It is small and physically accessible (Smelser, 1993). It represents the characteristics of the larger population. It is said that most of the sociological surveys are sample surveys. Stratified random sampling method has been used for the study. The sample size was 36 hailing from the different categories group of shipbreaking workers in Alang and Mumbai. According to N.J. Smelser, A random sample is one that is chosen in such a way that every element (or every combination of elements) in the population has an equal chance of being selected. And stratified random sampling method produce a weighted mean that has less variability than the simple random sampling.

Here the shipbreaking workers are the primary stake holders and others such as trade union, GMB, MBPT and NGOs are secondary stake holders because they also revealed various information regarding shipbreaking workers. On the basis of sampling method the study was conducted in the months of November and December 2009. Following tools were used for the data collection.

Observation- Observation is one of the principle techniques of research in social sciences. Some of the difficulties arising out of the use of interviewing in sociological data collection can be overcome by observation. According to P.G. Gisbert, Observation consists in the application of our mind and its cognitive powers to phenomena which we are studying. It is said that Science begins with observation and must ultimately return to observation for its final validation.

29

For the study of Decent work for the shipbreaking workers Non participatory observation method has been used. Here observer remain detached and does not participate or intervene in the activities of those who are being observed.

Interview- Interview is also one of the important methods of collecting data in social research. An interview is a means of information in which one person asks another either in person directly, or indirectly. According to P.V. Young, Interviewing is an interactional process. In general it can be said that an interview is face to face verbal interchange in which one person , i.e., the interviewer attempts to elicit some information or expressions of opinion from another person or persons regarding a particular issues. Individual and group, both type of interview has been conducted for gathering the information from shipbreaking workers. The respondents were directly contacted at the work site and their union office in Alang (26 respondents) and Mumbai (10 respondents) to assess the information through interview.

Interview Schedule- Interview scheduled is the name usually applied to set of questions which are asked and filled in by an interviewer in a face to face situation with another person. Structured interview schedule has been used for data collection where a set of question has already prepared before interviewing the respondents.

Sources of Data Collection For the study of Decent work for ship breaking workers both sources of data collection has been used which is as followPrimary sources- Here observation, interview and interview schedule are used for the primary data collection. Secondary sources- Beside primary data, the secondary data has been also used such as reports, articles, books, studies and information from GMB, MBPT and union authorities that gives information regarding working condition of the shipbreaking workers.

30

III.4 Research Design Descriptive Research Design has been used for the study of Decent work for shipbreaking workers. It is a scientific method where researcher has to observe and describe the behavior of a subject without influencing it in any way. III.5 Area of the study For the study, two areas have been selected where ship breaking activities are carried out. They are as follow: Alang/Sosiya- Alang/Sosiya Ship recycling yard is located 50 KM away from the city of Bhavnagar in Gujarat which lies on the western coast of Gulf of Cambay. In fact Alang and Sosiya are twin coastal villages dominated by fisherman and farmers. It is the largest ship recycling yard in the world stretching to distance of 15 kilometer. Ever since its inception in 1983, Alang/Sosiya has emerged as one of the demanding ship-scrapping destinations for the ship owners around the world. Here 173 plots are available to carry out the ship dismantling activities. Mazgaon- Mazgaon ship recycling yard popularly known as Darukhana is located in the coastal area of Mumbai, Maharashtra. Until the 1980s the ship recycling activities are limited to Darukhana only then after 1983 it was started in Gujarat. Mazgaon ship breaking yard is comparatively small and consists 19 plots.

31

SECTION IV STRATIFICATION OF THE WORKERS

The observations in Alang/ Sosiya and Mazgaon have made it very clear that the shipbreaking activities are carried out by different sections of workers. Shipbreaking workers perform their duty according to their assigned task or job. To understand the process of dismantling as well as the hierarchical relationship among the workers, it is necessary to have the workers profile. STAFF STRUCTURE Shipbreaker

GMB Office/ Mumbai Port Trust Office

Ship Breaking Plot Plot Manager

Mukadam

Safety Officer Environment and Safety Supervisor (ESS)

Field Supervisor

Crane Operators

Ship Supervisor

Gas Cutters & Helpers

Gas Cutters and Helpers

Figure IV.1: Staff structure of the shipbreaking industry in India. From the above staff Organogarm it can be interpreted that Ship breaker is the proprietor and employer of this industry. Gujarat Maritime Board Office and Mumbai Port Trust are the regulatory bodies who give them authority for breaking the ships and provide plots on the basis of lease in Alang/Sasiya and Mazgaon respectively. For 32

purchasing ship for dismantling, they get financial assistance from various banks. These banks pay almost 75% of the total cost price. While having discussion with the proprietor, they admitted that their work is being hampered because of red tapism in the regulatory authority. Plot Manager maintains the attendance register and pays wages to the workers. He also grants leaves in that particular plot. He is the only person who is authorized to look after the various issues of workers such as advance payment during the time of scarcity and to facilitate the relationship between Shipbreaker and workers. Generally they work under the pressure and influence of Shipbreakers. So, they are more interested in protecting the interest of their employer. Mukadam works as a plot supervisor. Generally he is an in- charge of all sort of activities related to the work in a particular plot. Workers perform their duty under his guidance only. The remuneration of a mukadam varies but generally it is 220 Rs. Per day. Safety Officer is also hired by Ship breaker in order to check the safety level of a ship which is going to be dismantled. He is also responsible to provide safety equipments to the workers. When compared to others workers, the safety officers are more educated. The salary given a safety officer is 10,000Rs. per month Crane operators are skilled workers. Their wages are comparatively high (Rs. 12000-15000per month). Maximum numbers of workers are gas cutter. Their wages vary from Rs 200 to 300 per day and the job which they perform is really very harsh. Apart from these workers there are others workers also such as malpani, engine jodi, cook, chantiwala, begari, loader, helper and mazdoor. In fact these workers are unskilled workers and the job is peculiar in its nature. Some of them get below 80 rupees which is less than minimum wages of Gujarat and Maharashtra.

33

SECTION V FINDINGS

V.1 Analysis and interpretation of Data For the study of Decent work for the shipbreaking workers 36 respondents were selected from the Alang/Sosiya (Gujarat) and Mazgaon (Mumbai). On the basis of their responses in the interview schedule the facts have been gathered and classified to assess the socio- economic conditions of the shipbreaking workers is as follow-

V.1.1 Working categories of Respondents

Figure V.1: Categories of workers

The above data shows that out of 36 respondents 16 are Gas cutters. A large section of the workforce in Alang/ Sosiya and Mazgaon engage in the gas cutting activities. Others comprise malpani, chantiwala and other unskilled workers. Apart from them plot manager, safety officer, mukadam and crane operators are skilled workers and their condition is comparatively better than others.

34

V.1.2 Migration

Figure V.2: Migrant workers Out of 36 respondents 33 are migrant workers. These workers come primarily from the backward states of India such as Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and Orissa. It shows that a large section of workers in Alang/Sosiya (Gujarat) and Mazgaon (Mumbai) are migrant workers who have come there from the deprived area in search of their livelihood. A considerable proportion of migrant workers living collectively in shanty in which they pay rent to the owner. During the interview it was found that workers generally stay with their regional peers and somewhere try to maintain distance from regional groups.

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V.1.3 Working Conditions of workers regarding their job

Figure V.3: Working conditions of workers Working conditions related to their job is miserable. Many of the respondents complained of not getting drinking water on the plot. The workers in Mazgaon have to bear the cost of water by purchasing it at 5 to 10 rupees per bucket which is really expensive. The workers have no provision for drinking water and water for domestic use, which is to be given by their employer. Though MPTDGEU took initiative in this regard and established a water tank there but this water tank is not sufficient for around 3500 workers. For them, something is better than nothing for the time being. They also dont have the adequate sanitation. So, they use road sides and railway tracks for their primary needs. Shipbreakers are not following the Supreme Court guidelines. From the interview and observation of the various plots it is said that there are no facilities of rest shelter and canteen. In many plots of Alang/ Sosiya toilets are available but very few are accessible for workers. Out of 36 respondents 22 were admitted that the working condition is not good.

36

V.1.4 Management behavior towards workers

Figure V.4: Management behavior Shipbreakers hire manager and mukadam to supervise the workers in a particular plot. Because of the influence of Shipbreakers they do not treat workers in a good manner and exploit them. In few cases mukadam does not have a cordial relation with manager also. Generally, concerned authorities put pressure on the workers to do dangerous work that turn into minor, major and sometimes fatal accidents. Workers revealed that most of the time managers do not pay any attention on their issues. Out of 36 respondents 34 told that management does not have co operative behavior towards them.

37

V.1.5 Membership of the Union (MPTDGEU/ASSRGWA)

Figure V.5: Members of the Union Alang Sosiya Ship Recycling & General Workers Association (ASSRGWA) is the first union of shipbreaking workers in the world. ASSRGWA is representing the collective voice of Alang- Sosiya shipbreaking workers and its membership is almost 6000. This union is an off shoot of Mumbai Port Trust Dock and General Employees Union (MPTDGEU) which is addressing the grievances of the Shipbreaking workers in Mumbai and is getting support from SMEFI and HMS on national level and IMF, FNV and GMB on international level. Out of 36 respondents 23 were members of ASSRGWA

38

V.1.6 Opinion about MPTDGEU/ASSRGWA

Figure V.6: Opinion about the existing Union Out of 36 respondents no one alleged that the Union is working in the favor of employer. Those workers who knew about the union they told that ASSRGWA and MPTDGEU raise the issue of workers in a proper way.

39

V.1.7 Safety rules

Figure V.7: Awareness of safety rules. Out of 36 respondents 35 were aware of safety rules. It means maximum workers know about safety measures. They had got information regarding safety equipments from the training programme which is conducted by GMB from time to time. The ASSRGWA is also playing vital role in this regard. One of the safety officers was told that workers get helmet, gloves, face mask, goggles and in some cases boiler suit also. In field visit it was seen that very few of them use gloves, face mask and goggles but helmet is used by most of the workers. Nowhere workers get safety shoes. There is Supreme Court guidelines for handling the asbestos and other toxic substances in order to reduce accidents and health related problems which are generally neglected by the shipbreakers. It was observed in the plot visit that very few have separate place for handling the asbestos but such places are also lacking infrastructure. This is an important issue which should be addressed by the various stake holders of the industry in a proper way.

40

V.1.8 Availability of medical staff on work place

Figure V.8: Availability of medical staff on work place Medical staffs are not available on any plot. Almost all the workers are suffering from itching because of handling toxic substances. Accidents regularly happen at work place which sometimes becomes fatal for the workers. The Employer has its own hospital building but it does not have doctors, medical staffs and equipments which hamper the adequate medical treatment. Even Red Cross society is trying to provide adequate health facilities to the workers. In the case of emergency, workers have to go to Bhavnagar which is 40 kilometers away from Alang. In Mumbai, workers generally go to private medical staff for their medical urgency which is really expensive for them.

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V.1.9 Injuries of workers while working at plots

Figure V.9: Injuries of workers while working at plot Out of 36 respondents 7 of them are never injured in which 2 of them are plot managers and 3 of them are safety managers. In fact the rate of accidents in shipbreaking industry is really high among the workers.

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V.1.10 Reason(s) for injury

Figure V.10: Reason(s) for injury Maximum number of respondents revealed that because of not having adequate safety equipments accidents happen. Workers demanded that they should get gloves weekly where as they get monthly and even they are not getting a safety shoe which is very much needed. All the 36 respondents said that they dont consume alcohol during duty hours.

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V.1.11 Getting money during scarcity

Figure V.11: Getting money during scarcity Maximum workers are not in a position to save or deposit money for their future needs because of their negligible income and precarious jobs. However they borrow money from their friends and relatives at the time of exigencies. In some cases managers give them advance money against salary.

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V.2 Major issues related with shipbreaking workers They do not get drinking water in their residence They do not have proper housing facilities Electricity problems, even on road and street Lack of medical facilities and emergency treatment Minor, major and fatal accidents No educational programme is run by GMB/MBPT for the children of workers Problem of sanitation in plot as well as in residence No implementation of Factories Act- 1948 Do not follow the Supreme Court guidelines for handling and removing asbestos. Workers are not getting goods and services on reasonable rate. Do not get wages on time. Duping the workers by not giving the promised amount. Hazardous and peculiar nature of job Lack of social security measures such as insurance and PF Apart from the above issues there are other issues also that not only indulge the workers capacity but also have adverse impact on industry too, such as bad working conditions, no rest shelters, no canteens, no cleanliness, no proper repairs, maintenance and replacement of equipments, no provision for immediate and proper health care and thus there is very disappointing situation prevailing over in this industry which should be addressed in the appropriate manner. V.3 Role of Trade Union V.3.1 MPTDGEU Mumbai Port Trust Dock and General Employees Union (MPTDGEU) is one of the oldest trade union in India that is working for the workers of port, dock and allied industries since 1920. The Union is striving to create friendly and harmonious relationship between the workers and their employers and also committed to their members, in order to secure their rights against exploitation from it is started.

45

For organizing unorganised workers MPTDGEU is working for the workers of private companies of port and downstream shipbreaking industries. For the affordability of shipbreaking workers, it was decided at the meeting of managing committee that they shall pay only Rs 50/- as a membership fees. Now, the union and its offshore (ASSRGWA) are working at Alang/Sosiya (Gujarat) and Mazgaon (Mumbai) for the welfare of shipbreaking downstream workers. The union is facing various challenges from many fronts. Local mafia, goons, politician vested interest try their best to nullify the welfare measure of union. Other barriers are in the form of lack of consciousness among worker, ethnic diversity, poverty and illiteracy. But these factors have not deterred union to push its agenda of organizing the workers for the betterment of their life. In order to implement the components of decent work the union raises voices against the exploitation and hazardous working conditions on various platforms. MPTDGEU is working for the shipbreaking workers health, safety, protection, training and child labour eradications. The union has partnered with likeminded NGOs and philanthropic organizations such as Mani Bhawan, Social Service League, Saint John Ambulance Brigade, Red Cross Society, Rotary Club of Bombay, Rotary Community Corps, Swadhar, Astitva. V.3.2 ASSRGWA ASSRGWA, the first trade union for the shipbreaking workers of the world was formed in the year 11th of November, 2005. And after a long struggle it got registration on 26th of March, 2007. It was really very difficult task to get register whereas lot of obstacles was there from the shipbreakers and Government authority but it was the persuasion of Dr. Shanti Patel (President of MPTDGEU) and collective efforts of the workers along with HMS that made it possible. After conducting the interview of workers, union activist and other concern authority it can be said that the Union involves in various activities to improve the working condition of the workers. With the appropriate means the union is providing basic amenities such as health care including blood grouping card and identity card in Alang/Sosiya. The office bearers of the union visit plots regularly to get the handful information and foster the spirit of unity among the workers through their various 46

activities. Primarily, union is working to encourage the membership and to uplift the condition of workers ASSRGWA is lassoing with Red Cross Society and GMB. The union participates and verdict to national and international organization on policy level such as ILO, IMO and Supreme Court committee. The union also pushes policies for the measures of Social securities such as insurance and Provident Fund. Recently PF commissioner visited the Alang yard and the Union office to get the information about workers. So, the workers can incorporated with the PF remedies and no doubt it was solely due to persistence effort of Mr. Rane and Mr. A.D. Nagpal, the Secretary of H.M.S. At the time of accident activists of the union rushed to site and try to help injured person to get medical treatment/ blood donation, registered case with port authorities, factory inspector and police authorities. Recently an accident was took place at plot no. 24 in Alang, where six workers were died on the spot from burn sustained. In that case the union complained to the High Court, Chief Minister of Gujarat, Gujarat Maritime Board, Factory Inspector, and Police. Then the Union demanded for the legal enquiry and the compensation of Rs. 10 lakh for each worker. However the dependents of the deceased workers got only 2.5 lakh rupees but it was the first time in the Shipbreaking industry of India where employer pays so much money. Apart from the above activities, the Union is also engaged in many other actions like training, workshops, gate meetings, awareness camps and medical camps/ blood grouping camps.

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SECTION VI WORKERS AND DECENT WORK INDICATORS

There is a list of decent work indicators suggested by Ghai (2003) which comprises the characteristics of all the four components of decent work advocated by ILO. As earlier mentioned the main objective of this study is to incorporate the shipbreaking workers with decent work remedies. So it is necessary to give a comparative study between decent work indicators and prevailing working condition for shipbreaking workers. It will identify areas of improvements so as to lead towards decent work for shipbreaking workers. Comparative study between decent work indicators and prevailing working conditions of shipbreaking workers is as followVI.1 Employment opportunities- Shipbreaking workers are having lot of employment opportunities in Alang/Sosiya and Mazgaon. The number of workers estimated in Alang/Sosiya is to be 1.5 to 1.6 lakhs (International Federation of Human Rights, 2000) and around 10,000 in Mazgaon (Mumbai). Nevertheless, these workers face cyclic unemployment. Here employment is directly proportional to the number of ships arriving at the coast. So, the employment opportunities increase with the arrival of more number of ships. VI.2 Acceptable work- Shipbreaking activities are generally categorized as hazardous and harsh in its nature. Ship dismantling industry presents a dangerous work environment with high risk of injury and accidents. We can categorize the shipbreaking activities as follow Skilled workers- Mukadam, Field supervisor, Safety Officer and Crane Operator Semi skilled workers- Gas Cutter Unskilled workers- Engine jodi, cook, chantiwala, begari, loader, helper and mazdoor. However the position of skilled workers is good as compare to other workers.

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VI.3 Adequate earnings and productive work- In Alang/Sosiya and Mazagaon workers are getting nominal wage. Skilled and semi skilled workers are getting around Rs. 200 to 300 per day. Unskilled workers get less than minimum wages as prescribed in the Minimum Wages Act. According to data available, (April 2002) the Gujarat Government fixed the minimum wages for unskilled workers at rupees 79 per day and the Maharashtra Government (July, 2009 for Zone 1) fixed it at Rs 157 for the unskilled workers. The main issue regarding wages is the workers are not getting the promised amount and they often duped by the employers. VI.4 Decent work hours- Working hours for the shipbreaking workers in Alang and Mazgaon is very exhaustive. The working day starts from 8 am to 5 pm with two hour compulsory overtime till 7 pm every day without getting overtime allowances. So it can be said that working day is of 11 hours with one hours lunch break and a fifteen minute morning (10 am) and afternoon tea breaks (3pm). Here workers are not paid for the compulsory overtime and when the work load is high, they even have to start their work at 7 a.m. This working situation clearly violates the ILO convention on working hours Hours of Work (Industry) Convention- 1919 and the (Indian) Factories Act- 1948 that states that any work of more than nine hours a day or 48 hours a week shall be paid overtime at twice the ordinary rate. VI.5 Stability and security of work- Although the Alang shipbreaking industry got recognized as organised sector by the National Commission Report on Labour in 2002, still workers are being considered as unorganised workers. All workers are non permanent and due to the contract system they are not even aware about their Principle employer. Because of non permanent nature of employment they can retrench by anytime without giving prior information. Shipbreaking industry is generally suffered with cyclic unemployment, where workers do not get any work when the ships for dismantling come in less frequency at the yard. During that period most of the workers have to lose their job or they get fewer wage. So it can be said that the shipbreaking workers have really less stability and security of work. VI.6 Balancing work and family life- As mentioned earlier that ship breaking workers have to work at least 11 hours per day without having weakly paid leave. Working at night though not usually practiced In Alang and Mazgaon yard but however some activities such as loading unloading and gas cutting take place during 49

the night also. Workers have to get up early in the morning at 5 am to prepare meals for the day because of not having canteen facility. So it can be said that working hours are very rigorous and its difficult to balance the family - work life. A large section of workers are migrant workers and they cant afford to live with their family. In Alang/ Sosiya and Maazgaon there is no system of paid leave. Workers generally visit their native place to meet their family once a year during the monsoon season and they are not paid any wages or remuneration during the period of absence and sometimes they have to lose their job because of the leave. This working situation clearly violates the Universal Declaration of Human rights (UDHAR) and Inter- State Migrant Workmen Act, 1979 (ISMW Act). UDHAR states that everyone is entitled to limited hours work and periodic holidays with pay and ISMW Act, 1979 that insists on displacement and journey allowance. VI.7 Fair treatment in employment- Shipbreaking industry provides lot of employment opportunities to the workers but the work which they get are mainly hazardous and peculiar in its nature. By looking at ship breaking workers anyone can easily say that their condition is really pathetic. At the one hand job is really very bad and at another hand employer do not treat them in well manner. Its only because of their limited option of livelihood they are working in the shipbreaking industry otherwise many of them do not want to continue with this industry. Even local workers do not indulge themselves in the shipbreaking activities. The workers are treated on non humanitarian ground and not getting any measure of fair treatment. Instead of having fair treatment in employment the industry is replete with abuses and violation of rights. VI.8 Safe work environment- Shipbreaking is a hazardous industry falling under the category of Hazardous Waste Management and presents a dangerous work environment with high risk of occupational diseases, injury and accidents. The industry consists of various hazards because of many reasons such as asbestos, falling objects, falls from the height, lack of Personnel Protective Equipments, heavy and toxic metals, PCBs and polyvinyl chloride, compressed gas, extreme temperature, long working hours, monotonous work and lack of training programs. The available data of GMB shows that during 1998 to 2003, 139 cases of fatal accidents took place in Alang only. In the yard cuts and burns consider as minor injuries and generally it 50

doesnt get attention from the concern authority. For reducing the accident in Alang GMB in 2003 came up with a training program to the shipbreaking workers in respect of safety and waste management. It is said by the workers that these programs are giving more stress on theoretical knowledge instead of practical knowledge. Even the last year (August-2009) six workers died on the spot from burn sustained while working in the engine room which was not free from the gas. It shows not only the negligence behavior of concern authority but also prove that the goal of safe work environment for the ship breaking workers is still far from achieved. VI.9 Social protection- The remedies which is provided by the state or the civil society to the working class in order to protect from the contingencies of the life is called social protection. The six main contingencies that make a person unable to earn his livelihood are sickness, accident, old age, pregnancy, unemployment and death. During these vulnerabilities workers and their dependent need measures of social security. Shipbreaking workers are not covered under the safety net of social protection. They do not get the benefits of Insurance, workmen compensation, Provident Fund, Gratuity or Maternity benefit. However ASSRGWA along with HMS is working in this regard so at least shipbreaking workers can bring under the Provident Fund Scheme. Regarding workmen compensation, it was the first time when the dependents of deceased workers got 2.5 lakhs rupees as compensation. They were the same workers, who died from burn sustained in August, 2009. So, it can be said that the Union is working for the remedies of social protection for the shipbreaking workers but because of not enough support from the other stake holders of the industry such as government authorities and ship breakers the situation is really grave. VI.10 Social dialogue and workplace relations- Social Dialogue consists all types of negotiation, consultation or simply exchange of information between, or among, representatives of governments, employers and the workers. In ship breaking Industry there are three set of actors available to comprise the social dialogue. Here GMB (Alang/Sosiya) and MBPT (Mazgaon) are the representatives of government, Ship Recycling Industries Association (India) is the representing body of employer and ASSRGWA (Alang/Sosiya) and MPTDGEU are representing the workers. Despite of having these representative bodies social dialogues are lacking between the employer 51

and workers. Employers do not want that these workers get the representation, so they always discourage them to join the union. Its a violation of ILO declaration on Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948. Even having lot of obstacles union has made its membership almost 6000 and trying to increase the number in the coming days, so the workers get adequate representation during the process of social dialogue. Regarding workplace relationship it can be said that workers are not happy with the behavior of the employer. At the one hand workers are not having good relationship with employer and on the other hand they do not have good relationships among themselves. For example unskilled and semi skilled workers always complain that Mukadam or plot manager treat them badly at the work place. In Alang, there is another important issue that hampers the workers and employer relationship is that the workers generally do not get the promised amount and they always duped by the employer. On that issue, 20000 workers went for the strike in March 2009. For the permanent solution of the wage, union is demanding for the separate wage board for shipbreaking workers. It can be said that the employers in shipbreaking industry are not willing to give proper representation of the workers that affects the process of social dialogue badly also not creating a harmonious relationship between the workers and the employer at the work place. VII.11 Economic and social context- The economic and social status of shipbreaking workers is miserable. Workers are not paid enough that they can uplift their condition. Majority of workers come from the backward and underdeveloped states of India. They have to face a number of problems because they are new to the place of destination and find difficulties to adjust with the changed situation and environment. Workers belong to different religions, regions, language and caste which create disparity among them. It has been noted during the interaction with workers that unskilled workers are generally belong to lower caste that causes discrimination within the workers itself. The level of education is also differs from job to job. Such as Plot Manager and Safety Officer are having bachelor degree where as a large section of the unskilled workers are illiterate. In term of women participation it can be said that this is the male dominating industry where only 3% female workers are engaged and performing manual work in the yards. About 50% workers are 52

addicted to Alcoholism and tobacco consumption. Living in shanty or house lacking the decent living standard even not having drinking water and sanitation are in the fate of Shipbreaking workers. Indebtedness is also one of the major issues for the workers. Generally workers away from their family for months together and they cant keep their family with them because of poor economic condition so some of them use to go for prostitution and bring HIV AIDS from there and day by day the situation is becoming alarming. So it can be said that socio- economic condition of the shipbreaking workers is vulnerable and pathetic.

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SECTION VII CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTIONS

The study was an attempted to assess the knowledge that what are the areas where shipbreaking workers are not getting the remedies of decent work. From above discussion, it has been proved that there are many areas where improvement is required such as adequate wage or remuneration, measures of social protection, bipartite or tripartite social dialogue, healthy workplace relationship, safety at work place and good socio- economic status of the workers. Apart from these drawbacks there are few areas where the shipbreaking industry is observing some of the indicators of decent work such as employment opportunities and existence of the Union. However employer discourages the workers to join the union. As ILO try to cover the unorganised sector with the remedies of decent work, the bad jobs of unorganised sector will get changed to good jobs. The shipbreaking activities in India came from the European countries in the mid 80s as a result of the relocation of the same industry to Asian countries. The industry is giving employment opportunities to the Indian workers and also provides large quantity of steel to the Indian industry without exploiting the natural resources. Though having its great economic importance the industry retains the characteristics of informal economy. The work which is offered by the industry is really dangerous and peculiar in its nature and also the industry has its adverse impact on environment. For making the industry less hazardous and environmental sound management ILO, IMO and Basel Convention has given its guidelines. There are few overlaps and ambiguities found in these guidelines, so it was decided to come with a joint ILO, IMO, BC guidelines which came up in February 2005. The Supreme Court of India has also given its order for assuring the roles and responsibilities of the various stakeholders of the shipbreaking industry. Shipbreaking activity is considered as a bad job. So it is not practiced in developed countries. It is mainly concentrated in developing countries. Apart from India the ship dismantling is carried out in Bangladesh, China, Pakistan, Turkey, Vietnam and others. The two main places in India where the shipbreaking activities are carried out are Mazgaon (Mumbai) and Alang/ Sosiya (Mumbai). The positions of the workers

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across the globe are almost the same. They are not getting the legal remedies and measures of social security. They do not allow them to form their organization or to participate in the Union activities. However MPTDGEU showed courage in this regard and started to organize the shipbreaking workers in Mazgaon. After getting success in Mazgaon, Union extended its activities to Alang/Sosiya and established the first trade union of the world for the shipbreaking workers namely ASSRGWA. The Union is working for the welfare of workers along with other stake holders of the industry. In Alang and Mazgaon, the atmosphere of fear and intimidation ensures that workers remain submissive. From drinking water to social security measures, there are several issues such as poor working condition, minor major and fatal accidents, lack of medical facilities, not having adequate sanitation, not getting the promised remuneration, work related hazard, occupational diseases, HIV AIDS, alcoholism, poor health, unsafe work place, long duty hours, polluted environment, issues related with migration and many others too which need to be rectified by suitable interventions. The Central and State Governments have formulated many rules and regulations to address the above issues. But if these rules and regulations are not implemented in a proper way it will lead to an exploitative situation. Suggestions: From the above discussion it can be said that there are lot of issues related with shipbreaking workers. Now the time has come that the stakeholders of the industry come together and work for the welfare of workers and environmental sound management that would lead the industry to achieve the goal of sustainable development and decent work. In order to achieve it, several steps have to be taken by GMB/ MBPT, SRIA and ASSRGWA/MPTDGEU. The guidelines of Supreme Court should be followed for handling and removing the asbestos that causes occupational diseases. The issue of water and residence should be solved by the collective effort of the stakeholders. Government has to order the ship breakers to provide these facilities to the workers. There are already various laws which are fairly progressive and are intended to solve the above issues. However the study shows that the conditions of workers are really unsatisfactory. Laws related 55

to overcrowding, sanitation, leave facilities, adequate wages, social security, working condition, industrial relation, recreation, social welfare and migration issues already exist in many industries of India. So with the implementation of these laws, state can uplift the condition of the shipbreaking workers. The two to three days training which is known as gas cutter training and basic training, provided by GMB is very theoretical in its nature. They should stress more on practical training. The MBPT should also start the same training program for the workers of Mazgaon. Union has to form its small wings in all the 183 plots in Alang and 19 plots in Mazgaon. These wings should work as a small committee and it should address the issue of workers at the plot level. For making goods and services available at reasonable price, the union can start a consumer co- operative store in Alang/Sosiya. The Union is already running a consumer cooperative society in Mazgaon. To encourage savings a Credit co-operative society can be formed among the workers. In case workers need financial assistance they can get micro credit and it will save them from exploitation of money lenders. The jobs in Shipbreaking Industry are peculiar in its nature. Cyclic unemployment is also one of the main issues of this industry. So, when workers do not get job they should get another alternatives for their livelihood. No were workers are getting safety shoes which is necessary for them. Workers get hand gloves weekly but the conditions of the gloves are not good enough that they are torn within a week. The issues related to water and light should be properly addressed by the concerned authority. To facilitate education of employees ward, GMB and MBPT should start an educational attainment. The kind of intervention will require hand in hand effort by all the three stake holders viz. GMB/MBPT, employers association and workers union. They need to make a comprehensive list of the various issues concerning the life of a worker in general and working condition in particular. The motto of I.L.O to provide decent work to all can be realized only when the troubles of the workers are suitably identified and promptly addressed

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Bibliography
Ahuja, R. (2006). Research Methods, Rawat Publication: New Delhi Andersen, A.B. (2001). Worker safety in the ship-breaking industries. Working papers, 167: International Labour Organization, Geneva. Bailey, P.J. (2000). Is there a decent way to break up ships? Discussion papers, International Labour Organization (ILO), Geneva. Bhatnagar, R. (2010, February 15), Panel allows toxic ship into Alang despite SC ruling. DNA, Mumbai. Chen, M. (2004). Rethinking the Informal Economy: Linkages with the Formal Economy: with the Formal Economy and the Formal Regulatory Environment. EGDI and UNU WIDER Conference, Unlocking Human Potential: Linking the Informal and Formal Sectors, Helsinki, Finland. Commission of the European Communities. (2007 May). Accompanying document to the green paper on better ship dismantling. Brussels. Ghai, Dharam (2006). Decent work: Objectives and Strategies, International institute for Labour Studies, International Labour Organization, (ILO) Geneva. Ghai, Dharam. (2002). Decent Work: Concepts, Models and Indicators. International institute for Labour studies, International Labour. Ghai, Dharam. (2003). Decent Work: Concepts and Indicators. International Institute Labour Review, Vol. 142. India: Ministry of Labour, (2002). National Commission Report on Labour. New Delhi. International Federation of Human Rights. (2000). Where do the Floating Dustbin end up: Labour Rights in Ship- breaking Yards in South Asia: The cases of Chittagong (Bangladesh) and Alang (India), France.

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International Labour Office. (2004). Safety and health in shipbreaking: Guidelines for Asian countries and Turkey. (ILO), Geneva. International Maritime Organization. (2005, February). Joint ILO/IMO/BC working group on ship scrapping. 1st session Agenda item 8, Switzerland. International Maritime Organization. (2004, March). IMO Guidelines on ship recycling. Assembly 23(19), Switzerland. Langewiesche, W. (2004). The Outlaw Sea: Chaos and Crime on the World's Oceans. London, Granta Books. Misra, H. (2009, July). Rights of Migrant Labour at the Alang Ship Breaking Yard. The Indian Journal of Social Work, 70(3). Narrain, S. (2006, February 05). Clemenceau: Greenpeace to register protest. The Hindu, New Delhi. Rane,V. (2009). Tute huve Sapne : Arising from broken dream. A Primer on Global Unions and What They Can Do For Migrant Workers, International Metalworkers Federation (IMF). Rodgers, G. (2001). Decent Work as a Development Objectives. Indian Journal of Development Economics, Vol.44, No.1 Secretariat of the Basel Convention. (2003). Technical guidelines for the environmentally sound management of the full and partial dismantling of ships. International Environment House, Switzerland. Simhan, T.E.R. (2004, November 15), Indias ship breaking industry goes hammer and tongs. The Hindu, New Delhi. www.basel.int. Accessed on 2009, 15 December www.greenpeaceweb.org . Accessed on 2010,18 January www.global-unions.org. Accessed on 2010, 2 January.

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www.ilo.org/public/english/protection/safework/sectors/shipbrk/index.htm. Accessed on 2010, 3 January www.marisec.org/recycling. Accessed on 2009, 22 December.

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Appendix: 1 Geographical location

India

Gujarat

Gujarat Bhavnagar

Mumbai

(Mazgaon)

Gujarat

Mumbai (Mazgaon)

Bhavnagar

World

Bhavnagar

(Alang/ Sosiya) Alang/ Sosiya Turkey Pakistan India Bangladesh Vietnam China

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Appendix: 2 Sample of an interview schedule

Interview schedule Decent work for Shipbreaking Workers (A special reference to Alang, Sosiya and Mazgaon)

S.M. Fahimuddin Pasha Intern at Mumbai Port Trust, Dock and General Employees Union, M.A. in Globalization and Labour, School of Management and Labour Studies, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai 1. Location or area 2. Name 3. Sex 4. Age 5. Education 6. Religion 7. Caste 8. Occupation 9. Monthly income 10. Family details

SL. No.

Name

Relationship with head of the family

Age

Sex

Education

Marital status

Occupation

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

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7 8. 9. 10. 11. 12.

11. Are you a migrant worker? a) Yes b) No 12. How do you find your work (working condition of the respondent)? a) Very good b) Good c) Average d) Bad e) Very bad 13. Regarding your working condition, which is/are following applicable for you? a) Drinking water b) Toilet c) Bathroom d) Rest shelter e) Canteen f) Any other................................................................................................................

14. How does the management treat you? a) Very co-operative b) Cooperative c) Neutral 62

d) Non cooperative 15. Are you a member of Union (ASSRGWA/ MPTDGEU)? a) Yes b) No 16. What is your opinion about the Union (ASSRGWA/ MPTDGEU)? a) They are real representative of workers. b) They are tails of Employers c) Cant say 17. Please tick the following health related problem/s by which you are suffering? a) Itching b) Skin diseases c) Eye problems d) Breathing problem e) Hearing problem f) Hyper tension g) Lungs problems h) Back bone problem i) Any other................................................................................................................ ........................................................................................................................ ........................................................................................................................ ........................................................................................................................ ........................................................................................................................ .................................................................................................................... 18. Are you aware about safety rules related to your job? a) Known b) Unknown 19. How do you get about safety rules? a) Management b) Trade Union c) Both d) None of the above 20. Are you using following things for your safety or not? a) Helmet 63

b) Shoes c) Goggles d) Face mask e) Gloves f) None of the above g) Any other/s............................................................................................................. .. 21. Do medical staffs available in your working place? a) Always b) Never c) Sometime 22. How many times you got injury while working in plot? a) Never b) Only 1 c) 2 to 4 d) 4 to 6 e) More than 6 23. What was/were reason(s) for the injury? a) Not using safety rules b) Alcoholism c) Technical problems d) By fault of any workers e) By fault of concern authority f) Any other reason(s)..................................................................................... 24. Please tick the following option/s where do you save/invest your money? a) Fixed deposit b) Post Office scheme c) Insurance d) Mutual fund e) Share market f) Any other

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25. From where you get the loan at the time of scarcity? a) Money lenders b) Bank c) Cooperatives d) Any other .

26. What is/are major problem(s) of workers in Shipping Industries? .............................................................................................................................. .............................................................................................................................. .............................................................................................................................. .............................................................................................................................. .............................................................................................................................. .............................................................................................................................. .............................................................................................................................. .............................................................................................................................. ..........................................................................................................................

27. What is/are suggestion(s) you have regarding above problems? .............................................................................................................................. .............................................................................................................................. .............................................................................................................................. .............................................................................................................................. .............................................................................................................................. .............................................................................................................................. .............................................................................................................................. .............................................................................................................................. ..............................................................................................................................

28. Do you have any suggestion for making the union (ASSRGWA/MPTDGEU) more affective? .............................................................................................................................. .............................................................................................................................. .............................................................................................................................. 65

.............................................................................................................................. .............................................................................................................................. .............................................................................................................................. .............................................................................................................................. .............................................................................................................................. .............................................................................................................................. ..............................................................................................................................

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Appendix: 3 Order of the Supreme Court of India

(1) Before a ship arrives at port, it should have proper consent from the authority concerned or the State Maritime Board, stating that it does not contain any hazardous waste or radioactive substances. AERB should be consulted in the matter in appropriate cases. (2) The ship should be properly decontaminated by the ship owner prior to the breaking. This should be ensured by SPCBs. (3) Waste generated by the ship-breaking process should be classified into hazardous and non-hazardous categories, and their quantity should be made known to the authority concerned or the State Maritime Board. (4) Disposal of waste material viz, oil, cotton, dead cargo of inorganic material like hydrated/solidified elements, thermocol pieces, glass wool, rubber, broken tiles, etc. should be done in a proper manner, utilising technologies that meet the criteria of an effective destruction efficiently of 99.9 percent, with no generation of persistent organic pollutants, and complete containment of all gaseous, liquid and solid residues for analysis and, if needed, reprocessing. Such disposed-of material should be kept at a specified place earmarked for this purpose. Special care must be taken in the handling of asbestos wastes, and total quantities of such waste shouldbe made known to the authorities concerned. The Gujarat Pollution Control Board should authorise appropriate final disposal of asbestos waste. (5) The ship-breaking industries should be given authorization under Rule 5 of the HW Rules, 2003, only if they have provisions for disposal of the waste in environmentally sound manner. All authorisations should be renewed only if an industry has facilities for disposal of waste in environmentally sound manner. (6) The State Maritime Board should insist that all quantities of waste oil, sludge and other similar mineral oils and paint chips are carefully removed from the ship and taken immediately to areas outside the beach, for safe disposal.

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(7) There should be immediate ban of burning of any material whether hazardous or non-hazardous on the beach. (8) The State Pollution Control Board (of Gujarat and other coastal States where this ship-breaking activity is done) be directed to close all units which are not authorised under the HW Rules. (9) That the plots where no activities are being currently conducted should not be allowed to commence any fresh ship-breaking activity unless they have necessary authorisation. (10) The Gujarat PCBs should ensure continuous monitoring of ambient air and noise level as per the standards fixed. The Gujarat PCBs be further directed to install proper equipment and infrastructure for analysis to enable them to conduct first-level inspection of hazardous material, radioactive substances (wherever applicable). AER shall be consulted in such cases. (11) The Gujarat SPCB will ensure compliance with the new Gujarat Maritime Board (Prevention of Fire and Accidents for Safety and Welfare of Workers and Protection of Environment during Ship breaking Activities) Regulations, 2000, by the Gujarat Maritime Board and should submit a compliance report to the Court within one year of the coming into force of the said Regulations. (12) The notification issued by GMB in 2001 on gas free for hot work, should be made mandatory and no ship should be given a beaching permission unless this certificate is shown. Any explosion irrespective of the possession of certification should be dealt with sternly and the licence of the plot-holder should be cancelled and the Explosives Inspector should be prosecuted accordingly for giving the false certificate. (13) A complete inventory of hazardous waste on board of ship should be made mandatory for the shipowner. And no breaking permission should be granted without such an inventory. This inventory should also be submitted by GMB to SPCBs concerned to ensure safe disposal of hazardous and toxic waste. (14) The Gujarat Maritime Board and Gujarat SPCB officers should visit sites at regular intervals so that the plot-owners know that these institutions are serious about

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improvement in operational standards. An inter-ministerial Committee comprising Ministry of Surface Transport, Ministry of Steel, Ministry of Labour and Ministry of Environment should be constituted with the involvement of labour and environment organisations and representatives of the ship-breaking industry. (15) SPCBs along with the State Maritime Boards should prepare landfill sites and

incinerators as per CPCB guidelines and only after prior approval of CPCB. This action should be taken in a time-bound manner. The maximum time allowed should be one year. (16) At the international level, India should participate in international meetings

on ship-breaking at the level of the International Maritime Organisation and the Basel Convention's Technical Working Group with a clear mandate for the decontamination of ships of their hazardous substances such as asbestos, waste oil, gas and PCBs, prior to export to India for breaking. Participation should include from Central and State level. (17) The continuation or expansion of the Alang ship-breaking operations should

be permitted subject to compliance with the above recommendations by the plotholders. (18) That the above conditions also apply to other ship-breaking activities in other

coastal States." It is desirable that the Government of India shall formulate a comprehensive Code incorporating the recommendations and the same has to be operative until the concerned Statutes are amended to be in line with the recommendations. Until the Code comes into play, the recommendations shall be operative by virtue of this order. Until further orders, the officials of Gujarat Maritime Board, the concerned State Pollution Control Board, officials of the Customs Department, National Institute of Occupational Health (in short 'NIOH') and Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (in short 'AERB') shall oversee the arrangement. The Collector of the district shall be associated when the actual dismantling takes place. Within three weeks the Central Government shall notify the particular authorities. The vetting of the documents to be 69

submitted for the purpose of grant of permission for ship breaking shall be done by the authorities indicated above.

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Appendix: 4 Materials which are obtained on breaking different types of ships

Steel plates, structures, pipes, beams, angles, channels, etc. Electrical equipments Engine and spare parts Generators Refrigerator and washing machine Wood (Door, panels, furniture, chairs, sofa-sets, tables, etc.) Cable (PVC coated Cu and all cables) Glass and wool, thermocoal (Sheet form) Oil (Furnace oil, lubricating oil, transformer oil and oil sludge) Lead acid batteries Compressor, boilers, valves & exhaust pipes Lifeboats Kitchen fixtures, sinks, cutlery Computers, Printers Air conditioners, television sets, fans Non ferrous scrap like brass, copper Rubber, rexins, plastics, cardboard, cement tiles and excreta.

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Appendix: 5 List of hazardous substances generated while shipbreaking activities

Ammonia Asbestos sheets and ropes Ceramic tiles Chlorofluro carbons (CFC) Fiberglass

Oil Paint chips Plastics Scale generated during gas cutting of steel Sludge

Glass wool and fibrous insulation Sun- mica. Inflammable gasses Thermo-coal Linoleum

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Appendix: 6 Occupational diseases and accidents in shipbreaking industry Lead

poisoning,

including

poisoning by any preparation or compound of lead or their sequela. Lead tetra-ethyl poisoning. Phosphorus sequela. Mercury poisoning or its sequela. Manganese sequela. Arsenic poisoning or its sequela. Poisoning by nitrous fumes. Carbon bisulphide poisoning. Benzene poisoning, including poisoning or its poisoning or its

Radium

or

other

radioactive

substances. X-ray. Primary epitheliomatous cancer of the skin. Toxic anaemia. Toxic jaundice due to poisonous substances. Oil acne or dermatitis due to mineral oils and compounds

containing mineral oil base. Byssionosis. Asbestosis. Occupational or contact dermatitis caused by direct contract with

poisoning amide derivatives or its sequela. Chrome ulceration or its sequela. Anthrax. Silicosis. Poi soiling by halogens or halogen derivatives of the hydrocarbons series. Pathological manifestations due to73

chemicals and paints. These are of two types, that is, primary sanitizers. Noise induced hearing loss irritants and allergic

(exposure to high noise levels). Beriyllium poisoning

 Carbon monoxide. Coal miners pneumoconiosis. Phosgene poisoning. Occupational cancer. Isocyanates poisoning, Toxic nephritis. Animal Bites

Vectors

of

infectious

diseases

(T.B., Malaria, etc.) Communicable transmitted by pets, diseases vermin,

rodents, insects. Backache Spondalise

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Appendix: 7 Photographs related with study

One of the plot in Alang, where workers performing their duty

Interview of the workers

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Children of shipbreaking workers attending the informal school run by MPTDGEU in Mazgaon.

Materials obtained from ship dismantling.

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